He vanished and gradually restored on stagefrom veins, to nervous system, to skinthe titular character of The Invisible Man. He was also the first to re-attempt Harry Houdinis dangerous 1912 Water Torture Cell, in which the magician, restrained at the feet, escaped after being lowered into a glass tank of water. Doug Henning, the ebullient, shaggy-headed magician who sparked a renewed interest in the craft and breathed new life into some of history's most famous The interview is notable for two reasons. The New York Times, in fact, labeled Steinmeyer theaters celebrated invisible man.. A $300-million (minimum) gondola to Dodger Stadium? He had been ailing for five months. That led to his role in The Magic Show. This clever prop allows the British nanny to pull gigantic items from her carpetbag, including a hat rack and full-length mirror. Doug Henning & His World of Magic (Dec 11, 1984 - Jan 27, 1985) Performer: Debby Henning [Assistant] Steinmeyer holds that feeling himself. United Archives via Getty Images / Getty Images Doug Henning is often credited with resurrecting magic as a theatrical art in the 1970s. During the early days, he practised at home for hours, says his sister, Nancy Henning. Doug Henning, the ebullient, shaggy-headed magician who sparked a renewed interest in the craft and breathed new life into some of history's most famous illusions, died on Monday in Los Angeles. As well, Debby starred in several summer theater musicals (including Fiddler on the Roof and Applause) and studied mime, jazz dance and singing. The standing-room-only shows caught the attention of NBC, which signed him up to do a special, The World of Magic, in which he recreated Harry Houdinis breathtaking Water Torture Escape trick. Andrew Gans During the evening on my second day in Hollywood, Steinmeyer drives me to the Magic Castle. Henning said his goal was to help audiences recapture a childlike sense of wonder. Debby Henning was the wife, assistant, business partner and muse to illusionist Doug Henning. They don't teach you anything.". He was determined to learn enough from the veterans to put magic in a play. I mean its allas soon as people believe youre doing one thing, you can subvert it by doing something else., In Hiding the Elephant, his narrative history of magic, Steinmeyer points out what most of us already suspect or know: The secrets of magic are not true secretsthe answers are often right in front of us. He admires a trick well done. I nod. In the 80s Henning also created illusions for others, including Michael Jackson, Earth, Wind & Fire and the Toronto rock band Lighthouse. True to form, Steinmeyer first gives a non-answer. WebHis real name: Birth name of Doug Henning is Douglas James Henning Is Doug Henning still alive? Two pages depict a giant industrial fanclearly an illusion in which the performer passes unharmed through the spinning bladesbut many of the others are impenetrable. I was a 13-year-old kid who just lost a father And it was like another door opening on an interest I already had, and opening in some bigger, grander way., In the following years, Steinmeyer dropped his own act; what he really loved, he realized, was conceiving ambitious illusionsthe flashbulb of an idea popping inside his head, the mental calisthenics of how it might work, the sketching and spitballing. His wife, Deborah, was at his side, Reuters reported. There are 24 notebooks, 100 pages each. In a sense, Dougy forced me to overcome my natural shyness.". One of his most impressive acts was ''Metamorphosis,'' an illusion borrowed from Harry Houdini, his idol. , money, salary, income, and assets. He is from Canada. "When I perform, I could love a million people, but I had trouble loving one person Debby's helped me overcome my fear of intimacy.". In 1973, he borrowed $5,000 from his mother and, with a friend, launched a rock musical-cum-magic show called Spellbound in Toronto. Doug Henning was born on May 3, 1947 in Fort Garry, Manitoba, Canada. Debby received her B.F.A. We've received your submission. Henning had revived magic in a big way. TimesMachine is an exclusive benefit for home delivery and digital subscribers. WebDoug Henning. Why is Frank McCourt really pushing it? In fact, the script sucked and the characters were mostly uninteresting. To order copies of Today, running his own business requires an astonishingly disparate set of skills. TV magician and escape artist who brought Merlin to Broadway and became known for his groovy mustache and rainbow-colored clothes. Blocking belongson the stage,not on websites. Steinmeyer helped Ramon create what has become a signature part of his act. '', After his success with ''The Magic Show'' and on television, Mr. Henning returned to Broadway twice, in the 1983 musical ''Merlin,'' and in a 1984 solo show, ''Doug Henning and His World of Magic.''. He begins a mesmerizing filibuster about the illusions evolution, citing his friend and mentor Alan Wakeling, who in the 1970s came up with an incredibly elegant design for the trick in which two audience members shackle the hands and feet of the woman, and instead of sawing the box in two, the magician stabs four blades through the sides. Here is all you want to know, and more! After I borrow a tie at reception to pair with my sport coat and meet the dress code, the manager greets us. Just like a real-life movie, the story of Buddy the Elf meeting his biological father has come to life, just in time for the holidays. Whats striking, besides the polished performances, is the feeling in the building. People Magazine Interview: Part Two The parks is linked to Indian spiritual leader Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, the founder of Transcendental Meditation. So as one of historys greatest conjurers of magic continues to explain and not explain the safe trick, I find myself wondering: If anyone can dig up the secrets behind many of Steinmeyers tricks, why is he so intent on hiding them? All Rights Reserved. In fact, theres just enough room for the woman to drop her knees to one side and avoid the blades. Over in the larger Parlor of Prestidigitation, Bill Abbott presents a mashup of puppetry and magic featuring a lustful monkey. Known for his curly locks and crooked smile, Mr. Henning was a familiar face on TV in the 1970s and early 1980s, and was the star of Broadway's The Magic Show (with a score by Stephen Schwartz), Merlin with Chita Rivera (and a score by Elmer Bernstein) and Doug Henning's World of Magic. Henning sees no one at any. Looking like a hippie, he is credited with restimulating an interest in magic and illusion, introducing such tricks as Harry Houdini's famous "water torture escape" to a new generation. Steinmeyer doesnt know how the safe illusion works. His net worth has been growing significantly in 2022-2023. For example, the Mary Poppins illusion originated as an unrelated, sudden jolt of inspiration: a table that employs angled mirrors to conceal items within its folds. He honed his skills touring North America with veteran magicians, and with a bit of luck, he opened a magic-music show in a Toronto theater. For years and years, I avoidedI just thought it was presumptuous to say, Heres how you create things, he says. With his magic shows, he rejected the traditional tuxedo and top hat costume and prefered bright multi coloured casual clothing and tights. Natural Law Party. He later married Debby Douillard in 1981. He also created special effects for tours by his friend, Michael Jackson. Before long, he developed what was known as a medicine pitch act, in which he played an old-timey snake-oil salesman and incorporated tricks into demonstrating his various cures. So whats the trick? When the safe is opened, the list matches up, item for item. He treasures the wonder that comes with being fooled in an artful way. I couldn't help myself. Nobody else is working at this level. Theyve just saw the world together again and seem comfortable in their relationship. Magician Henning Dies - People People Weekly. How a Legendary Magician Builds the World's Greatest Illusions. Neil McNally and The Doug Henning Project 2017-2022 Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this sites author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Upon graduating with a psychology degree in McMaster University in 1971, Henning and then-girlfriend Marsden Barrick performed as Henning and Mars at Yorkville coffeehouses, a military base near the North Pole, LAs famed Magic Castle, and on a 1972 episode of the CBCs Telescope program. Tony-Nominated Magician Doug Henning is Dead at 52, Magician Doug Henning, who popularized magic and illusion on Broadway in such shows as, Glenn Davis and Chris Perfetti Star in Rajiv Joseph's, 2023 Tony Awards Nominations Announced May 2, Olivia Valli and Celia Hottenstein Are New Leads in National Tour of, Joy Woods Returns to Skid Row as Audrey May 2 in Off-Broadway's, Broadway Eatery Glass House Tavern Targeted With Negative Reviews Following Dispute With Pedicab Drivers. Toronto Star articles, please go to: www.TorontoStarReprints.com, Conversations are opinions of our readers and are subject to the, The Toronto Star and thestar.com, each property of Toronto Star Soldering 101: How To Bond Wires, Cables, and More, How the Microwave Was Invented by Accident, How Noise-Cancelling Earbuds Actually Work. The legend reads: LevitationThe Greatest Illusion in the World.. The production, with songs by Stephen Schwartz and book by Bob Randall, earned Henning a Tony nomination for Best Featured Actor in a Musical and, says McNally, a reputation as a legitimate Broadway star. A version of The Magic Show was also mounted at Torontos Queen Elizabeth Theatre in 1980, where it was filmed and aired on CBC. He was 52. Which Celebrities Still Have Twitter Checkmarks? Inspired by Federico Garca Lorcas The House of Bernarda Alba, the play takes on gentrification and social strife in New York. See the article in its original context from. Debby became Doug's assistant, appearing as a singer and dancer, as well as designing all of the costumes, for Merlin and on tour. from the Cooper Union for the Advancement of Art and Science in New York where she majored in painting, graphics and video art. Then simultaneous with that, theres the script of what youre actually doing, so theres a divergent thing where youre saying one thing and youre doing something else. Hes not going to let me flip over his mirrors or rifle through his drawers, and when I give him a straight-line question, he responds with misdirectionlabyrinthine tangents and looping alternate pathways. Built in 1909, the building is a shambling maze, a classic chateau-themed manor with narrow passages, branching wings, antique banisters and Tiffany stained glass windows. When Steinmeyer was 13, his father died, leading to what he describes as a hell of a year. As the family wrestled with grief, his mother encouraged him to attend a magic convention in Michigan with his friends, to plug into something that might distract or excite him. Hearst Magazine Media, Inc. All Rights Reserved. This copy is for your personal non-commercial use only. There are careful sketches of rotating, hinging mechanisms, drawings of altered cabinets and wardrobes enveloping phantom figures and annotated with measurements and enigmatic notations. Henning, the man who performed Harry Houdinis legendary water torture escape on national television before a live audience and later became a spokesman for the spiritual leader Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, died of liver cancer Monday in Los Angeles. TM devotees claim that the silent meditation technique promotes relaxed awareness, stress reduction, access to higher states of consciousness, and reduces heart disease and high blood pressure. Over the next decade, he was a regular presence on television, adding splashy new tricks to his repertoire, like a 1980 show where he appeared to have been eaten by a shark. Some of these tell-alls have existed for generations. All Will Self-Driving Cars Out-Smart Human Drivers? Audiences should recognize the magic about to be performed. I remember thinking that was a really good idea, but I had no use for it at the time, Steinmeyer says. In 1992, he announced that he and the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, a spiritual adviser, would build a $1.5 billion theme park near Niagara Falls, Ontario. When were little kids, were filled with wonder for the world its fascinating and miraculous, he once said. Superstar magician Doug Henning led a wild life | The Star | Biography - A Short Wiki. | Superstar magician Doug Henning led a wild life | The Star Major General Dany Fortin, military officer acquitted of sexual assault, sues government, PM for $6M Though one critic hailed him, After Falling Under the Spell of Wife Debby, Doug Henning Hopes to Charm Broadway Again (Part.2) My friends said there was practically a flash of light, says Henning, 35. I People Magazine Interview: Part One THE DOUG HENNING His answer, at first, is that he doesnt really like the question. 03 of 10. Henning was also a disciple of transcendental meditation and its leader, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. In 1975, Mr. Henning broke through to an even larger audience when he performed Houdini's ''Water Torture Escape'' on a live television special. Henning was approached by Broadway producers Edgar Lansbury and Joseph Beruh about bringing a version of the show to New York. Id be remiss in not mentioning that yesterday, March 24th, was Harry Houdinis 147th birthday. Given the nature of his business, he said, he had to be proprietary about sharing the way magic is accomplished. Doug Henning hippie magician television tv Published by travsd Writer and performer Trav S.D. But even given Steinmeyers relative anonymity compared with the Cooperfields and Blaines of the world, magic as a whole exists now in the age of YouTube. For magic to accomplish the impossiblemaking something disappeara flaw in the magic has to be hidden, like a trick mirror or special compartment. It was very much of its time, Steinmeyer says. Suddenly the assistant was standing in his place, and Mr. Henning was in the trunk, handcuffed.
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